February 28, 2011

Noise-making MMOs in GDC 2011

GDC 2011 will open its door and begin to receive attendees worldwide today. Although the convention is called Game Developers Conference, it's not merely a summit for videogame developers, it's also a festival for fans that are willing to see and try the games they love. Now all the exhibitors have been announced and some of them are MMO developers/publishers. To warm you up for the big conference, I'd like to introduce you 5 MMOs that could make a big noise in the following few days.

The Secret World

*
What to see: new gameplay trailer
*
What to expect: more gameplay and beta info

It's been about 5 years since the game was announced and about 9 years since the game's development started, but TSW and many of its systems are still covered by mist. Generally, you will join one of three secret societies and fight against the evil(PvE) and the other two secret societies(PvP). You can travel between Tokyo, London, and New York and even visit the underground world beneath those cities. No class system, fast-paced combat, and perhaps, a little bit thrilling are the features of the game.

Tera

*
What to see: new demo, new information and features
*
What to expect: beta info

Tera has been launched in Korea with some problems(BOT, bugs). Hopefully those problems will be fixed as soon as possible and won't affect the game's oversea plan. In the official letter from early this month, En Masse revealed their plan(including beta) in the next few months. Currently En Masse's working on server and hardware configuration and test, and then(a couple of months later) they will invite a large group of people to test the server and account system. At last you will enjoy the beta time, probably in this summer.

Now it's time to introduce you 3 new friends that will be officially displayed to the public for the first time, they are Digimon Masters Online, NED, and UnDead Online.

Digimon Masters Online

*
What to see: reveal of gameplay features
*
What to expect: open beta and release announcements

Completely different to Digimon Battle's turn-based combat mechanics, Digimon Masters Online features 3D real time combat. What's more, Digimon Masters provides better graphics and more complex gameplay systems. The game will be a must-play title for all anime fans in 2011. So how exactly does the game look like? You should come and check out our report during GDC 2011.

NED: The New Era of Fantasy

*
What to see: new info of the game
*
What to expect: announcement of oversea operation plan

Wemade's NED is a very new game, even in Korea, so it's unlikely to go to oversea market within this year. Since the game will be brought to a western gaming show, there's still the possibility to have some surprises from WeMade. At a glance, you will say that the game is like Aion, but if you go deep into the gameplay, you will find that the combat of NED is more interesting. You can fight on mounts, in the sky. And you have to watch out for the complex environment because the lava and water round will also kill you.

UnDead online

*
What to see: game announcement
*
What to expect: gameplay video, systems, etc

Cartoon style zombie game, hmmm, it's funny. According to the developer JumpCore, the game will be a first person shooter and features episodic storytelling. Each episode of the game series will tell the story of a character that exemplifies one of the character classes in the MMO game. Player will experience that character's journey from his or her previous existence into the post-Apocalyptic world brought to life in the UnDead Online MMO, while exploring the unique game play aspects of that character's class along the way. Take a look at the teaser video below to feel the horror in advance.